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The Witcher 3 | Review Thread

OmegaDL50

OmegaDL50

Member
I have no qualms against Polygon.

I generally try to be as neutral as possible regards to any website.

Well...except Dualshockers....the hell with those guys.

Yes Polygon's review was good, They liked the game, gave it a fair critique, I only had one issue with it. Outside of that, everything is all cool.
 
M

misho8723

Banned
tuxfool said:
Snide remark. Polygon isn't well loved around GAF.
Click to expand...

Oh fuck... I just read that review.. his complains about women and violence against them in a world which is heavily based on medieval period, I disagree greatly with him on this, but ok, I respect his opinion.. but this "... I don't recall a single non-white humanoid anywhere — not in Skellige, Novograd, Oxenfurt or anywhere else." What the fuck is this? Really, I don't understand this... a fictional world made by one Polish author should have people of all colors just because it MUST have for unknown reasons ? Does that reviewer complain about this stuff all the time? This is some fucking BS.. what the hell is wrong in this society? Now everyone who's going to make a new world in his book, video-game, movie, theater play, etc. should have there people of all colors, just because today's society is forcing it for BS reasons? Is this some kind of new rule/law which everyone must follow? Man, today's society is fucked up and it pisses me off
 
Corpsepyre

Corpsepyre

Banned
OmegaDL50 said:
I have no qualms against Polygon.

I generally try to be as neutral as possible regards to any website.

Well...except Dualshockers....the hell with those guys.

Yes Polygon's review was good, They liked the game, gave it a fair critique, I only had one issue with it. Outside of that, everything is all cool.
Click to expand...

Polygon DOES have some pretty well-written pieces too. There was one on Spec Ops that was brilliant. Their reviews are a different matter, however, in my opinion. Very hit and miss on that front, but this Witcher 3 review is well-worded and thought out, I think.
 
T

TheFatMan

Member
tuxfool said:
The review I'm sure lots of people were waiting for:

Polygon - 8.0
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Jesus Polygon. I don't even know what to say to this damn review. Is he really lowering the score of the game because he feels the women in this fantasy universe aren't treated well?

No shit dude, the game isn't set in 2015 California.

Only thing of note I learned from that review was that the game is too easy on the default setting haha.
 
GavinUK86

GavinUK86

Member
OmegaDL50 said:
I have no qualms against Polygon.

I generally try to be as neutral as possible regards to any website.

Well...except Dualshockers....the hell with those guys.

Yes Polygon's review was good, They liked the game, gave it a fair critique, I only had one issue with it. Outside of that, everything is all cool.
Click to expand...

What's wrong with Dualshockers?
 
S

Slaythe

Member
I thought DA : I was atrocious.

I couldn't keep playing because of all the grind and fetch quests and boring world.

I gave in to the hype because of GAF.

From an honest opinion, how is Witcher 3 compared to DA : I ? Should I give in again ?
 
Dr. Kitty Muffins

Dr. Kitty Muffins

Member
misho8723 said:
Oh fuck... I just read that review.. his complains about women and violence against them in a world which is heavily based on medieval period, I disagree greatly with him on this, but ok, I respect his opinion.. but this "... I don't recall a single non-white humanoid anywhere — not in Skellige, Novograd, Oxenfurt or anywhere else." What the fuck is this? Really, I don't understand this... a fictional world made by one Polish author should have people of all colors just because it MUST have for unknown reasons ? Does that reviewer complain about this stuff all the time? This is some fucking BS.. what the hell is wrong in this society? Now everyone who's going to make a new world in his book, video-game, movie, theater play, etc. should have there people of all colors, just because today's society is forcing it for BS reasons? Is this some kind of new rule/law which everyone must follow? Man, today's society is fucked up and it pisses me off
Click to expand...


Game reviews have just gotten weird. Let the creators create the world they want and let the market decide if they like it. There is no need to perpetually protest until all games look and think along the same lines.
 
G

Glass Shark

Banned
In our time with the game, we saw significant technical issues, including hard crashes, endless load screens, major framerate drops both at random and during more crowded fight scenes, and failures by the game to trigger even scripts which would halt forward progress within a quest until the game was reloaded, or, on occasion, the console restarted entirely.
Click to expand...

92 Metacritic score. For this.

I have lost all confidence in professional game reviews.
 
C

CHC

Member
Not surprised that Polygon played the "offended" card on their review.

The Witcher 3's subject matter, its almost defiant doubling down on its treatment of women as titillating props for Geralt and the player, even as it tries to flesh out more female leads, is its most disappointing aspect. This constant presence weighs down what would otherwise be an excellent bit of closure for Geralt's video game saga
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I like how they criticize the game for objectifiying women but also for "trying" not to objectify women by featuring fleshed-out female characters.....
 
T

tiredheadcrab

Member
misho8723 said:
Oh fuck... I just read that review.. his complains about women and violence against them in a world which is heavily based on medieval period, I disagree greatly with him on this, but ok, I respect his opinion.. but this "... I don't recall a single non-white humanoid anywhere — not in Skellige, Novograd, Oxenfurt or anywhere else." What the fuck is this? Really, I don't understand this... a fictional world made by one Polish author should have people of all colors just because it MUST have for unknown reasons ? Does that reviewer complain about this stuff all the time? This is some fucking BS.. what the hell is wrong in this society? Now everyone who's going to make a new world in his book, video-game, movie, theater play, etc. should have there people of all colors, just because today's society is forcing it for BS reasons? Is this some kind of new rule/law which everyone must follow? Man, today's society is fucked up and it pisses me off
Click to expand...

Its not a bad score really. He has done this before and I am not sure what he was expecting when he went into it. The Witcher 2 probably wasnt much better. I dont think CDPR would really care and just view it as a silly American making an odd criticism.
 
OmegaDL50

OmegaDL50

Member
GavinUK86 said:
What's wrong with Dualshockers?
Click to expand...

I really don't want to go off topic. since this is the Witcher 3 review thread, and get in trouble with the mods.

It's something about them not properly sourcing their news when it comes to some articles, as well as if false report is made it isn't immediately corrected when the correction is available on other news websites.

I'm trying to be brief since I don't want to derail this topic and get in trouble.
 
V

ValfarHL

Member
misho8723 said:
Oh fuck... I just read that review.. his complains about women and violence against them in a world which is heavily based on medieval period, I disagree greatly with him on this, but ok, I respect his opinion.. but this "... I don't recall a single non-white humanoid anywhere — not in Skellige, Novograd, Oxenfurt or anywhere else." What the fuck is this? Really, I don't understand this... a fictional world made by one Polish author should have people of all colors just because it MUST have for unknown reasons ? Does that reviewer complain about this stuff all the time? This is some fucking BS.. what the hell is wrong in this society? Now everyone who's going to make a new world in his book, video-game, movie, theater play, etc. should have there people of all colors, just because today's society is forcing it for BS reasons? Is this some kind of new rule/law which everyone must follow? Man, today's society is fucked up and it pisses me off
Click to expand...

Wait, was this the post that got him banned?

I have no idea what I'm doing here. Soo afraid to get spoiled on this game. Even knowing the main quest is about 100 hours is for me as spoiler. Dammit, I must lose all track of time.
 
A

Admiral Woofington

Member
Slaythe said:
I thought DA : I was atrocious.

I couldn't keep playing because of all the grind and fetch quests and boring world.

I gave in to the hype because of GAF.

From an honest opinion, how is Witcher 3 compared to DA : I ? Should I give in again ?
Click to expand...

DA:I hype probably stems from the game being infinitely better than DA2 and there being somewhat of a drought of decent games at that point after the disappointment of Destiny.

Witcher series improved with W2, and people have nothing but love and respect for CDPR when it comes to quality due to it. Reviews are praising it far and above Dragon Age Inquisition, and it's getting high scores from people who haven't given that score to but a few games in the past few years.
 
M

mcfrank

Member
Dr. Kitty Muffins said:
Game reviews have just gotten weird. Let the creators create the world they want and let the market decide if they like it. There is no need to perpetually protest until all games look and think along the same lines.
Click to expand...

What? It is a critics job to notice things like racial or gender depictions and call out creators who are bad at it so that the industry as a whole improves. This is absolutely their role.
 
bodine1231

bodine1231

Member
Arthur Gies,tappin' two

Image.ashx
 
E

elitewillie1

Banned
Have you guys ever heard Geis on Rebel FM? Dude is so pretentious and mostly a bully on the show. Every time I heard his voice I want to punch a baby. What else would you expect from his reviews. BTW I'm Hispanic and would be a fucking moron to complain that the Witcher 3 has no Hispanic people. Seriously who cares. The game has fucking dragons and gryphons for fuck sakes.
 
OmegaDL50

OmegaDL50

Member
I am looking forward to this game.

I honestly haven't seen such so many critically well scoring game in a very long time.

To be honest I could be wrong, I'm only participating in this topic is because The Witcher 3 is the next major game I plan to play.

I know nothing of the plot or world, outside of a few references. Basically going into this thing blind. Except for what I know from Witcher 1 and 2.
 
A

allftw

Neo Member
Slaythe said:
I thought DA : I was atrocious.

I couldn't keep playing because of all the grind and fetch quests and boring world.

I gave in to the hype because of GAF.

From an honest opinion, how is Witcher 3 compared to DA : I ? Should I give in again ?
Click to expand...

All the reviews are praising the world and most of them are saying that the quests are well crafted although it's worth mentioning that IGN found the main story too fetch-quest heavy.

My honest opinion is that you have nothing to fear with Witcher 3 in that regard. I felt exactly the same way about DA:I but knowing CDPR and also from what I've seen of this game I'd say it is going in the opposite direction from DA:I.

Still if you're unsure about the game I think it would be better to wait for more impressions and more importantly for the hype to die down to get a clearer sense of how it holds up.
 
iNvid02

iNvid02

Member
he should have at least noted the source material is a series of medieval books written by a polish author in there somewhere
 
T

TheFatMan

Member
Slaythe said:
I thought DA : I was atrocious.

I couldn't keep playing because of all the grind and fetch quests and boring world.

I gave in to the hype because of GAF.

From an honest opinion, how is Witcher 3 compared to DA : I ? Should I give in again ?
Click to expand...

It sounds like the game isn't as bad with the "fetch quests" as Dragon Age was, not to mention this game is much more open world than DA:I.

Still, I've seen some reviews mention fetch quests and too much running around. Probably best if you wait till it comes out and watch a few videos to see how you feel about it.
 
OmegaDL50

OmegaDL50

Member
When I read a review I try to ignore the numbers......most of the time.

It's the article itself and the context of the information the author presents to me is what I find important.

I've read many a review in which a game received a 9 or 4 out of 5 but there the actual article itself was very negative in tone you would think the score wouldn't match the author's written material.

The number seems very arbitrary in my personal opinion.
 
A

Admiral Woofington

Member
KingKong said:
Do people really think medieval Europe was completely white

http://medievalpoc.tumblr.com
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Correct me if I'm wrong (and there's a high chance I am so please do) but wouldn't this stem from Tolkien getting the ball rolling with white human/elves/dwarves and authors not moving away from this? Still I'd argue that CDPR's decision might've come more from trying to keep faithful to the books, in every regard.

edit: I'm trying to think really hard if I remember prominent minority characters in Tolkien fantasy.
 
T

truestatic

Member
jrh2 said:
92 Metacritic score. For this.

I have lost all confidence in professional game reviews.
Click to expand...

In a really really long game though. Those are serious problems, but what I'd want to know is, how prevalent are they? If they're near constant then the game would border on frustratingly unplayable. If they're occasional? Once every 10-15 hours of play? It won't really interfere with my enjoyment.
 
S

Scrooged

Totally wronger about Nintendo's business decisions.
d1rtn4p said:
Hate when reviewers try to bring real life issues Into video games, it's ridiculous. They're meant for entertainment...
Click to expand...

More and more self proclaimed progressives are latching on to the idea that content in entertainment directly informs real world behavior to a large degree. We have a generation of Jack Thompsons out there keeping things in check for us.
 
E

Emperor_Uriel

Member
Interesting review. It's a weird feeling, seeing a series you love get flak for the sake of a cause you believe in, but I agree with those saying that Geis and other critics are doing their job by attacking content they see as unjust.

The only point that I'm not sure I see eye-to-eye on is the violence against women aspect, because extreme violence against anyone and everyone is a hallmark of the Witcher series. To not brutalize women at all because of their gender would be just as egregious, as I guarantee plenty of men and gender-ambiguous beasts will be torn apart throughout the game.

Remember that this is the same series that had collectable sex cards in the first game. CDPR is trying, guys.
 
L

Lady Gaia

Member
mcfrank said:
What? It is a critics job to notice things like racial or gender depictions and call out creators who are bad at it so that the industry as a whole improves. This is absolutely their role.
Click to expand...

Bingo. As a woman who plays video games I absolutely, positively want to find out if I'm going to grind my teeth over the portrayal of women before I buy a game. I didn't buy GTA V in part because there were enough signs that this was going to be the case. If reviewers had just ignored the issue I would have been livid.

As it stands, I have bought the Witcher 3 based on my experience with the prior title and expect to find it irritating but not unplayable so. I understand others might come to a different conclusion and fully support reviews reflecting this fact. For me, it helps that there are some strong female characters in the mix. Glad to hear it!
 
T

tuxfool

Banned
truestatic said:
In a really really long game though. Those are serious problems, but what I'd want to know is, how prevalent are they? If they're near constant then the game would border on frustratingly unplayable. If they're occasional? Once every 10-15 hours of play? It won't really interfere with my enjoyment.
Click to expand...

Maybe the score should mostly tell you? It got those scores despite those issues. Either way, the PC version seems to run fine.
 
M

Momentary

Banned
So a game gets scored less because they tried to portray women as to how they would have been treated in an age similar to this? And because everyone was white? I don't get it. I'm not even white and I don't get this.

wonder what he thinks of A Game of Thrones.
 
A

Admiral Woofington

Member
Rayge said:
So a game gets scored less because they tried to portray women as to how they would have been treated in an age similar to this? And because everyone was white? I don't get it. I'm not even white and I don't get this.

wonder what he thinks of A Game of Thrones.
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?? Game of Thrones has hispanic, black, and other minorities as characters. At the least in the show which is what most people know. If you're talking about the sexualization of women then nevermind.
 
T

Tovarisc

Member
Admiral Woofington said:
edit: I'm trying to think really hard if I remember prominent minority characters in Tolkien fantasy.
Click to expand...

Well if you want reach hobbits because they are, well, short?

Emperor_Uriel said:
The only point that I'm not sure I see eye-to-eye on is the violence against women aspect, because extreme violence against anyone and everyone is a hallmark of the Witcher series. To not brutalize women at all because of their gender would be just as egregious, as I guarantee plenty of men and gender-ambiguous beasts will be torn apart throughout the game.

Remember that this is the same series that had collectable sex cards in the first game. CDPR is trying, guys.
Click to expand...

Btw, why all bandits etc. are men? Also I think CDPR came out and admitted that sex cards in TW1 was bad and juvenile decision from them, or do I remember wrong?
 
Y

Yabberwocky

Member
I'm a fan of both series, but The Witcher and Game of Thrones suffer from the exact same issue: they show a semi-realistic view of women with a medieval time period ('oh, look how these poor women are treated, it's this horrible!'), but then turn around and sexualise/objectify them at the same time ('eeey, lads, feast your eyes on this!'). Having your historical torture-porn with a bit of cheesecake on top is pretty crap to me. I don't always agree with Gies, but this issue is always worth discussing.

I will be getting the Witcher 3, though, as 1) gimme the awesome, 2) CD Projekt Red seems to be trying to improve how they treat their female characters with each game, even if it is at a bit of a glacial pace. I really like what I've seen with both Yennefer and Ciri, along with the return of Triss, etc. I do agree with Polygon/Kotaku, though, the design of Adult Ciri is a bit weird considering the role the protagonist/player has towards her. Bioshock Infinite's Elizabeth was another eye-brow raiser. Corsets are worn out the outer layer, yes, that's completely how it works. D'oh.

I'm looking forward to Rock Paper Shotgun's review, I don't think it's up yet?
 
A

Admiral Woofington

Member
Lady Gaia said:
Bingo. As a woman who plays video games I absolutely, positively want to find out if I'm going to grind my teeth over the portrayal of women before I buy a game. I didn't buy GTA V in part because there were enough signs that this was going to be the case. If reviewers had just ignored the issue I would have been livid.

As it stands, I have bought the Witcher 3 based on my experience with the prior title and expect to find it irritating but not unplayable so. I understand others might come to a different conclusion and fully support reviews reflecting this fact. For me, it helps that there are some strong female characters in the mix. Glad to hear it!
Click to expand...

Yeah the first game is the biggest culprit, but the universe has sorcerers/sorceresses that are really high up in the political chain (Triss and Yennefer are part of them) and most of the ones featured in the novels are the females. I can't recall one major male wizard character from the top of my head.
 
G

Gattsu25

Banned
Rayge said:
I would say a 6/10 at least if it was awesome. They treat women way worse in that universe. Infinitely worse.
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One can hope that a new Berserk game would be good enough to justify an above average review score.

That would mean that it was up to the reader to inform themselves on the review and make their own evaluation on whether or not it applies to them. As if the reader was a sentient being that was smart enough to have their own experiences.
 
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